


Voice of the father

by Steangine



Series: Voice of us [1]
Category: Bleach
Genre: I think it's a bit of a comedy, M/M, meet the in law
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-08
Updated: 2016-09-08
Packaged: 2018-08-13 22:39:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7988740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Steangine/pseuds/Steangine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At the supermarket Isshin meets an arrancar and he takes a liking to him. [Requested by tumblr user selenaestella - “meets the in laws” Grimmjow runs into Isshin in the human world… how will it go I wonder]</p>
            </blockquote>





	Voice of the father

**Author's Note:**

> Usually when it takes me little time to write something, I like it. And I'm very proud of this short story.

Isshin saw many things during his long life, both as shinigami and human, and that reduced drastically the number of events that could surprise him. But running into an arrancar in the supermarket was quite startling even for him.

Tall, with an old fashioned pompadour hairstyle and contracted eyebrows that gave to his concentrated eyes an endless glare directed to the chocolate shelves.

Isshin could ignore him and pass without giving any sign that he noticed his presence, disguising himself as a mere human who couldn’t see spirits. However he approached him and pretended he was interested in the chocolates, then spoke.

“It’s a bit difficult when you have all these choices.”

The arrancar didn’t realize those words were for him, so Isshin had to be more explicit.

“Never seen a hollow in a supermarket, are you looking for something in particular?”

Their eyes met. The arrancar was visibly surprised and his right hand suddenly leaned on the hilt of his sword. Isshin shook his hands in front of him and laughed to break the tension he created.

“Don’t worry! It’s been a while since I left my Shinigami career to be a doctor. I just defend when forced to.”

Isshin glanced without any hint of menace, but Grimmjow felt a bizarre sense of pressure coming from his reiatsu, as if the man himself was a warning of danger without looking dangerous at all.

“Well, do you need help? I guess you don’t have many supermarkets in Hueco Mundo.”

“I’m perfectly fine.” The arrancar crossed his arms. “I can figure this out.”

“Many brands can confound ideas.”

“My ideas are perfectly fine.”

“I mean, I’m used to this but sometimes I just–“

“Did you leave Seireitei on your own or did they kick you out from there because you are annoying as fuck?”

The arrancar snapped, but Isshin didn’t seem hurt.

“I decided to.”

“I didn’t want an answer.”

“By the way, we’ve been talking for a while and I haven’t introduced myself yet. What a rude behavior of me. I’m Isshin.”

“…Grimmjow.”

Grimmjow observed the man next to him. He hadn’t many chances to talk to a shinigami, even if he fought against lots of them, but he was pretty sure that Isshin was one of his kind. His behavior reminded him of Urahara, so he was torn by the trust that man’s features somehow inspired and the lingering unease he felt because of his smile. There was something ambiguous in his reiatsu. Ambiguous but familiar and Grimmjow was bothered because he only had a blurred sensation and couldn’t give it a proper form.

“My, my… you’re still on defense. But don’t worry, I have three wonderful children I want to go back to and I’m too rusty to start a quarrel with such a young hollow.”

If he was lying, he was a good liar. Grimmjow didn’t release the tension he put as defense, but chose to keep on with the conversation anyway.

“I have no interest in fighting with you.”

“Well, then we both agree on something.”

A woman pushed her shopping cart past Isshin and gave him a worried glance, finding creepy that a full grown man was talking alone.

“Uhm… how troublesome…” He commented massaging his chin covered in a thin beard. “She probably thinks I went nuts… by the way, why are you here?”

Grimmjow guessed he was stuck with the man. But he saw a chance to wriggle out from that tunnel of uncertainties he threw himself in, as he decided to go to the human world on his own.

“…I need chocolate.”

“Are you looking for a particular one?”

“Cat shaped ones. They are sweet and… cute. That’s all I know.”

Grimmjow tilted his head, trying to find a hint of that description on the boxes’ drawings, but was afraid he chose the wrong shop. Again.

“Ah, those are good!”

Grimmjow turned to Isshin with his eyes wide opened.

“I know them.” The man explained with a smile. “Those are my son’s favorite, but it’s been a while since I bought them for him. He says he’s grown up and he doesn’t need me to buy him sweets anymore, but you’re never too old for the love of a father.”

Grimmjow deleted all the information useless for his quest and stopped at the first three words, all the rest entered his ears as a clouded buzz.

“Where do I find them?”

The abrupt question ripped Isshin out from the delusion of his children showing him their love in the same way he did with them. Grimmjow’s stare was so intense, he believed it could have pierced him from side to side.

“I’ll bring you there.”

The only shop in Karakura which sold that kind of sweets was a tiny place near the Kurosaki clinic. Isshin often bought sweets there and having again that tiny lacquered box in his hands gave him a nostalgic vibe: maybe he just had to take some for Ichigo, even if the one who bought them was always Masaki and after her death Ichigo never accepted them again from somebody else’s hands.

“How did you pay if it weren’t for me?”

Grimmjow raised an eyebrow. “Humans can’t see me. It’s a piece of cake taking things from them.”

“I see…”

As Grimmjow reached his hand out to take the box, Isshin put it out of his reach.

“Since I paid for it, at least I’d like to know one thing.”

“Hah?”

“So hollow can eat other things except for human souls.”

“Of course they can. Don’t you shinigami know?” Grimmjow tried again to take the box and started to be pissed when Isshin denied it for the second time.

“And these are for you.”

“No.”

“No?”

Grimmjow growled. He would have gladly pulled out his sword to cut that man, however he still felt that tickling on the back of his neck that was like a signal: Isshin could have been more threatening than he showed and the last thing Grimmjow needed at that moment was entering a fight with a powerful enemy in human world, since a certain someone wouldn’t have been glad of that.

“Those are for the guy I’m currently fucking. He is whining as fuck lately so they told me a present would have made him feel a bit better. Now give me those fucking chocolates before I throw a cero on you!”

Isshin moved away the box at the last moment and Grimmjow grabbed the air.

“There’s a little magic word.”

“Or I’ll kill you.”

“No.”

“Hurt you very bad?”

“Wrong. It’s just one.”

Grimmjow made a disgusted grimace and looked like he was about to insult the man, but when he opened his mouth he just forced his lips to spell a single word.

“…please.”

His growl made Isshin chuckle and finally Grimmjow could grab the chocolates he was looking for.

“I hope your boyfriend will be okay. What’s his name? Who knows, maybe I know him.”

Isshin laughed at his own words. He only knew shinigami and humans, Grimmjow was the first hollow he actually talked to for more than a handful of seconds.

“Probably you do if you really are a shinigami. He is the substitute shinigami here.”

The laugh froze on Isshin’s throat.

“Kurosaki Ichigo.”

 

 

 

Ichigo looked at the box and couldn’t control the warmth spreading on his face. Probably his cheeks and ears were turning red and he looked away from Grimmjow because he felt ashamed of that clear display of happiness.

“Why did you… and how did you know?”

“Once you told me.”

Ichigo didn’t really remember, but since his favorite chocolates were on his hands, Grimmjow was telling the truth. And the idea that Grimmjow actually memorized whatever he told him made Ichigo smile, despite his efforts of keeping his face contracted in a scoff.

“But why?”

“Because you turned into a complaining sissy and I hoped a present would have calmed you down.”

Grimmjow managed to destroy that wonderful mood in less time Ichigo needed to activate his bankai.

“I’m not a complaining sissy! I’m just nervous because of my entrance exams! How could an arrancar know? You don’t have universities in Hueco Mundo!”

For how Ichigo tried to maintain his eyebrows contracted into an angered glare, he was just too happy Grimmjow took the initiative and did something for his sake. Happy and puzzled.

“Grimmjow, did you steal this?”

“No. I was helped.”

Ichigo opened the box and the view of the tiny chocolates struck him right into the memories: his mother always let him choose first and he used to take the one at the very center. Every chocolate was the same in shape and flavor, but that tiny brown stylized cat was special in his eyes.

He took that, glancing at the hole left at the exact center of the box before looking at Grimmjow.

“Who helped you?”

Ichigo didn’t resist and put the whole chocolate inside his mouth. The sweet intense flavor exploded as it touched his tongue and he munched on the chocolate until its solid consistence melted and the taste invaded all his mouth. He closed his eyes and already felt the chocolate sliding towards his throat.

“Your father.”

That sweet sugary chocolate turned into a mouthful that almost chocked Ichigo.

**Author's Note:**

> Meanwhile Isshin is whining in front of Masaki's photo because his son didn't talk to him about his boyfriend and is keeping him out of his life.


End file.
